Portland, Oregon, United States · On-site
$82k–$87k/yr
The Role The Demand Planner plays a key role in translating commercial plans into an accurate, actionable demand forecast that keeps Smith in stock, agile, and ready for growth. Reporting to the Director of Supply Chain …
Skills: Demand Planning, Forecasting, S&OP, Data Analysis, Excel
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The Demand Planner is responsible for creating accurate demand forecasts by integrating statistical data with commercial inputs from Sales and Marketing. They lead the S&OP demand review process to align assumptions and mitigate risks across various sales channels.
Requires 2-4 years of demand planning or supply chain experience within a CPG environment. Candidates must possess advanced Excel skills and a proven ability to partner with sales teams to improve forecast accuracy.
The Role
The Demand Planner plays a key role in translating commercial plans into an accurate, actionable demand forecast that keeps Smith in stock, agile, and ready for growth. Reporting to the Director of Supply Chain and partnering closely with Sales, you'll lead the forecasting cadence across channels, align assumptions, and surface risks and opportunities early — without waiting to be asked. You'll connect the dots between history, promotions, new items, and market signals, then turn that insight into a clear plan the broader supply chain team can execute. You'll also bring a critical eye to what's not working and fix it.
Essential Responsibilities
· Develop and maintain a baseline statistical forecast, using it as a benchmark to challenge or validate qualitative inputs from Sales and Marketing.
· Own the rolling demand forecast across channels (DTC, retail, foodservice, international as applicable), using historical demand, shipment signals, and commercial inputs to build a clear, bias-aware forecast at the right level of detail (SKU/location/customer).
· Lead the monthly/weekly demand planning cadence: gather assumptions from Sales and Marketing (promotions, new items, distribution changes), document drivers, and align a single set of numbers.
· Partner with Sales to translate account plans into forecast updates, identify upside/downside risk, and recommend actions that protect service, margin, and working capital.
· Drive Demand Review as part of S&OP: present forecast changes, key variances, and scenarios; escalate constraints and decisions needed to keep the plan executable.
· Monitor forecast accuracy and bias (MAPE, WAPE, BIAS), build simple diagnostics, and continuously improve methods, master data, and assumptions to raise planning reliability.
· Collaborate with Supply Planning/Operations on upcoming constraints (capacity, materials, lead times) and proactively adjust demand plans or propose alternatives to minimize disruption.
· Maintain planning tools and data hygiene (ERP/planning system, item/customer attributes), ensuring inputs are accurate, auditable, and Smith-standard in their detail and craftsmanship.
· Other duties as assigned or identified
Key Competencies
· Self-directed and action-oriented; identifies what needs to be done and moves on it without requiring a prompt
· Strong analytical and logical thinker; comfortable with large data sets, forecast modeling, and building simple, repeatable diagnostics from scratch
· Proactively audits data, tools, and processes for gaps — then proposes and executes fixes rather than flagging and waiting
· Translates complex data into a clear story and a direct recommendation for cross-functional partners
· Strong Sales partnership skills; can influence without authority and navigate healthy tension
· High ownership and follow-through; doesn't let ambiguity become an excuse for inaction
· Intellectually curious and eager to grow; asks good questions and learns fast from misses
· Outstanding organizational skills and business acumen; understands how forecast decisions ripple into inventory, service, and cash
· Understands product complexity, including raw material seasonality and long lead time botanical and tea sourcing
· Passion for Smith Teamaker's culture — Head, Heart, and Hustle (we work hard, we care about each other, and we do things right
Required & Desired Experience
· 2-4 years of experience in demand planning, forecasting, or supply chain analytics in a CPG (or similarly fast-moving) environment
· Proven track record of improving 'Forecast Value Add' (FVA) – demonstrating how the planning process improves the final plan
· Hands-on experience partnering with Sales on account-level forecasting, promotions, and distribution changes
· Strong working knowledge of S&OP/IBP fundamentals, including demand review inputs/outputs and cross-functional decision making
· Advanced Excel skills (pivot tables, lookups, basic modeling); experience with ERP and planning tools (NetSuite/SAP/Oracle, Demand Planning platforms) a plus
· Comfortable working with large data sets and building simple, repeatable reporting (Power BI/Tableau experience a plus)
· Strong collaboration and presentation skills; able to communicate a forecast story that is clear, candid, and aligned to Smith standards
Physical, Driving & Travel Requirements
· This position is full time in the office at 110 SE Washington St with some flexibility around hours, catch-up days, etc.
· While performing the duties of this job, the employee may be regularly required to stand, sit, talk, hear, reach, stoop, kneel, and use hands and fingers to operate a computer, telephone, and keyboard.
· Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision requirements due to computer work.
· Light to moderate lifting may be required.
Benefits
· Competitive salary commensurate with experience and performance
· Fully paid medical, vision and dental insurance
· Paid holidays, PTO, flexible spending account, 401k, neighborhood parking permit
· Excellent tea selection and lots of high fives
Smith Teamaker provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.
The most uncommon name in Tea
At Smith Teamaker, we are Makers. We Make Moments that are Memorable, one exceptional tea experience at a time. We craft tea and other plant-based beverages steeped in quality and creativity. Elevated, but always accessible, our aim is to be the daily craving of consumers with uncompromising taste. Our product collections are designed to elevate the taste standard of core beverage occasions – hot or cold, home or away – continually building our reputation for quality, creativity, and great taste. With a deep focus on the needs of people, we balance daily favorites with unrivaled innovation to reach new consumers and build frequent consumption habits. Our growth comes primarily from direct hospitality and digital experiences where guests develop deep loyalty as they immerse themselves in our brand. We leverage premium Restaurants, Offices, and Retailers to extend our access to new consumers and households, both domestically and in select international markets. We source the highest quality ingredients from sustainable farms, leveraging deep relationships and our growing scale to capture superior quality with limited working capital. We directly control our blending, packing and logistics to ensure quality and differentiation while delivering cost efficiency and agility. We know that exceptional experiences come from exceptional people, and actively build the capabilities and disciplines for our teamakers to thrive, all of whom share a commitment to our head, heart, and hustle culture. Our ability to enrich lives is directly linked to the sustainability of our planet. We are committed to making a positive impact in our world by providing safe, plant-based products; eliminating waste; and actively supporting the protection of clean water, sustainable farms, and the communities that nurture them. Together, these efforts enable us to create enterprise value well ahead of the category and ensure the sustainability of the business we have created.
Offices: 110 SE Washington Street, Portland, Oregon 97214, US
The most uncommon name in Tea
At Smith Teamaker, we are Makers. We Make Moments that are Memorable, one exceptional tea experience at a time. We craft tea and other plant-based beverages steeped in quality and creativity. Elevated, but always accessible, our aim is to be the daily craving of consumers with uncompromising taste. Our product collections are designed to elevate the taste standard of core beverage occasions – hot or cold, home or away – continually building our reputation for quality, creativity, and great taste. With a deep focus on the needs of people, we balance daily favorites with unrivaled innovation to reach new consumers and build frequent consumption habits. Our growth comes primarily from direct hospitality and digital experiences where guests develop deep loyalty as they immerse themselves in our brand. We leverage premium Restaurants, Offices, and Retailers to extend our access to new consumers and households, both domestically and in select international markets. We source the highest quality ingredients from sustainable farms, leveraging deep relationships and our growing scale to capture superior quality with limited working capital. We directly control our blending, packing and logistics to ensure quality and differentiation while delivering cost efficiency and agility. We know that exceptional experiences come from exceptional people, and actively build the capabilities and disciplines for our teamakers to thrive, all of whom share a commitment to our head, heart, and hustle culture. Our ability to enrich lives is directly linked to the sustainability of our planet. We are committed to making a positive impact in our world by providing safe, plant-based products; eliminating waste; and actively supporting the protection of clean water, sustainable farms, and the communities that nurture them. Together, these efforts enable us to create enterprise value well ahead of the category and ensure the sustainability of the business we have created.
Offices: 110 SE Washington Street, Portland, Oregon 97214, US
